Have you ever come across an interesting Reddit thread, only to find that the juiciest comments or the entire post itself have been deleted? It‘s a common frustration for many Reddit users. Just because something has been removed from Reddit doesn‘t necessarily mean it‘s gone forever though.
In this guide, we‘ll show you several ways you may be able to uncover and view deleted Reddit posts and comments. We‘ll also discuss some of the limitations of these methods and potential privacy/ethical considerations to keep in mind. Let‘s dive in!
What Happens When a Reddit Post or Comment is Deleted?
First, it‘s helpful to understand what actually happens when a Reddit post or comment is deleted. When a user deletes their own post or comment, the content is removed from view on Reddit, but it is not immediately erased from Reddit‘s servers. The post/comment will still exist in Reddit‘s database and backend for some period of time.
If a moderator removes a post or comment, it will no longer be visible to regular users visiting the subreddit. However, other moderators and potentially admins can still see posts/comments that have been removed by a moderator.
Submissions and comments that are deleted very quickly after being posted (within a minute or so) are less likely to be captured by archives and third-party sites. The more time a post or comment was active on Reddit before deletion, the higher the chance you‘ll be able to find it using the methods below.
Method 1: Reveddit, Unddit and Removeddit
There are several third-party websites that actively monitor and archive Reddit submissions and comments, storing copies of content even after it gets deleted. Three of the most popular are:
All three sites work similarly. Here‘s how to use them:
- Find the URL of the Reddit thread you want to check for deleted content.
- Copy the URL.
- Go to reveddit.com, unddit.com, or removeddit.com.
- Paste the Reddit URL into the search box on any of these sites.
- Press Enter or click the Search button.
The site will load a cached copy of the Reddit thread, with any deleted or removed posts/comments highlighted in red. You can scroll through and view the deleted content just like you would on a normal Reddit page.
Alternatively, you can replace "reddit" in the thread‘s URL with "reveddit", "unddit", or "removeddit" in your browser‘s address bar. For example:
- Original Reddit URL: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/abc123/example_thread_title/
- Reveddit URL: https://www.reveddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/abc123/example_thread_title/
- Unddit URL: https://www.unddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/abc123/example_thread_title/
- Removeddit URL: https://www.removeddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/abc123/example_thread_title/
These sites rely on their own archives and don‘t work 100% of the time. If a post/comment was deleted very quickly, it may not have been archived. However, they are the most convenient and reliable way to uncover deleted Reddit content.
Method 2: The Wayback Machine
The Wayback Machine is a massive archive of web pages operated by the Internet Archive organization. It takes periodic snapshots of websites and stores them, allowing you to see what a given page looked like at various points in the past.
While the Wayback Machine doesn‘t specifically target Reddit, it does occasionally archive Reddit threads. If a thread was popular or around for a long time before posts were deleted, it may have been captured by the Wayback Machine.
To check:
- Copy the URL of the Reddit thread you want to view.
- Go to web.archive.org.
- Paste the thread URL into the search box.
- Press Enter.
If the Wayback Machine has any stored copies of that thread, you‘ll see a calendar view showing dates the page was archived. Click on a date to view the snapshot of the thread from that time. With some luck, it may contain the posts that have since been deleted.
Method 3: Google Cache
Google crawls and indexes web pages in order to power its search engine. When you perform a Google search, you‘ll often see a small arrow next to each result. Clicking this arrow reveals a "Cached" link, which allows you to view the version of the page that Google has most recently indexed.
In some cases, Google‘s cached version of a Reddit page may contain posts or comments that have been deleted since Google last indexed the page. To check for a cached version:
- Go to Google.
- Search for the exact URL of the Reddit thread.
- If the thread appears in the search results, click the small down arrow next to the URL.
- Click the "Cached" link.
This will load Google‘s most recent cached version of the Reddit thread. Deleted content will only appear if it was live on the page the last time Google indexed it. And Google‘s cached pages are usually only available for a short time. So while this method is worth trying, it has limitations.
Method 4: Ceddit and Resavr
Two other sites that archive Reddit content are Ceddit and Resavr. They work similarly to Method 1 above:
- Copy the URL of the Reddit thread.
- Replace "reddit" in the URL with either "ceddit" or "resavr.com".
- Press Enter to load the archived version of the page.
Again, posts/comments deleted very quickly may not appear. But these sites may occasionally catch content that other archives missed. It‘s worth checking if you‘ve exhausted other options.
Limitations and Considerations
While the methods described above can be effective for viewing deleted Reddit content, they are not foolproof. Some key limitations to keep in mind:
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Timing: If a post or comment was deleted within seconds or minutes of being made, it is unlikely to be captured by any archive service. Archives typically scan Reddit periodically, not constantly.
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Specific subreddits: Certain subreddits may be excluded from archiving by the moderators or at Reddit‘s request. Archives will not contain content from these subreddits.
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User deletions: When a user deletes their entire Reddit account, their username will be replaced with [deleted] across Reddit. Most archives do not capture the original usernames in these cases.
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Reddit legal removals: In rare cases, Reddit may remove content for legal reasons. This content is unlikely to appear in any archive, as Reddit can request its removal.
It‘s also worth noting the potential ethical and privacy implications of viewing deleted content. If a user chose to delete their own post or comment, they may not want it to live on in archives. Use your own judgment and respect others‘ privacy when using these methods.
What About Deleted Reddit Accounts?
Sometimes you may come across a post or comment where the username is replaced with [deleted]. This means the original poster deleted their Reddit account after making that post.
Unfortunately, once the account is gone, there‘s no reliable way to see which user originally made those posts. Archives usually do not capture the original username in these cases. Only Reddit employees would be able to connect those posts to the original account.
Can Moderators See Deleted Posts?
Moderators of a subreddit have additional capabilities beyond regular users. They can see posts and comments that have been removed by other moderators within their subreddit (although they cannot see posts deleted by the original poster before any moderator action was taken).
Moderator-removed content will usually still be visible to other moderators when viewing the subreddit directly (not through an archive site). However, only admins (Reddit employees) can see posts and comments deleted by the users themselves.
Official Reddit Data Archives
For those with more technical knowledge, Reddit does provide officialdata archives containing all public Reddit comments and posts. However, this data is complex and requires significant processing to make usable.
Reddit also offers a read-only API that can be used to access public data. However, the API does not provide access to any deleted content. Once a post or comment is deleted, it is not accessible through the official API.
Conclusion
While Reddit doesn‘t make it easy to view deleted content, there are a few ways to potentially uncover lost posts and comments. Third-party archives like Reveddit, Unddit and Removeddit are the most reliable options.
For older threads, you may also have success with the Wayback Machine, Google caches, or other tools like Ceddit and Resavr. However, content deleted very quickly after posting is unlikely to be captured by any archive service.
Always use caution and respect others‘ privacy when viewing deleted content. In most cases, if a user chose to delete their own post, it‘s best to allow it to stay deleted. But if you‘re just looking to satisfy your own curiosity or recover something you missed, these techniques can be helpful.
Happy Redditing!
